Go for Gold!

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August 13/08 11:06 a.m.

Simply too beautiful to watch, Landfraus' heart goes out to this dream pair and I do not think I should deprive you of watching this tremendeous "gold ride".
Sorry, could only find a German version, but words are not necessary anyway.

Sunday Song

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August 10/08 8:53 a.m.

A nice song for a sunday morning, makes you want to travel, doesn't it, to far away . strange places.

Full of good Food

August 9/08 8:37 p.m.

Had a veggie dinner tonite, pancakes filled with chanterelle,which we call Pfifferlinge, and as a dessert blueberrie pancakes with whipped cream! Yummy! and after dinner the latestst news about the conflict in Georgia, houses burning, people dying and at the time beeing no end in sight to an awful conflict. It seems far away and unreal, but it isn't. Bizarr! It is a weird world we are living in.

Personal Olympics

August 9/08 2:03 p.m.

Our grandson had taken part in a hockey summer camp for the last week of school holidays. He had been voted best young talent player of the group , not bad really, but he also made third place in "trash talk", which grandma-Landfrau is extremely proud of. A multi talent, our grandson! He will be eleven years old August 11th. - worldwide good wishes are appreciated then!

For todays' Start...

August 8/08 8:39 a.m.

....of the Olympic games.

Another Fish Story

August 7/08 2:26 p.m.

I am not so sure, but it seems our veiltail has lost some of his veiltail ! No wonder, the way the original (formerly) sole inhabitant of our pond, the monster goldfish, is chasing him around, maybe he ate part of the tail, antropohagus!(cannibal) , should re-baptize him Hannibal Lecter.

The one Day Summer - Summer

August 5/08 7:17 p.m.

At least we had been lucky during our little vacation, but otherwise, summer -zilch. One day it is real nice and one prepares to set up the garden furniture and starts thinking about getting something for bar-b-que, the next day it is crowding winter again. Crazy! Today it had been one of the better days, so we took the opportunity to drive for a beer to the beach bar at the riverside, me and Herr Hund with the bike and Herr husband with the car. Memory of the broken foot on account of falling off the bike is still too fresh. From the beach bar you have a great view upon the opposite riverside, similar to the view in my present header. Herr Hund tried in vain to join the pack of other dogs frolicing around, but he seems to be the outsider kid with the spectacles, mobbed by all the others, they just ignore him. And he is so eager to join in! Poor kid, eh dog, I should say!

We made it!

August 3/08 4:05 p.m.

...and for all of you who have been faithfully checking my blog, here is a nice video of "Burg Bourscheid" which we could see from our hotel and which I visited with our grandson. -

We had a very relaxing stay in Luxembourg and aside from eating,drinking,wellness,massages and walks with Herr Hund we did not do much, grandson claimed, that the visit to the castle had been enough education for this trip. He stated that he wanted to "chill". Well, fine with me, I think I deserved some "chilling" anyway. - One morning, walking the dog, I saw some deer, the first time we had been in that region. I took it as a lucky sign.

Still at that hateful task of unpacking and stowing away bags, left them sitting in my rooms overnite,but no little house gnomes appeared to put them away, so I have to be my own house gnom, as usual.

Will we make it?

July 25/08 7:02 p.m. Keep in touch!

Snails and such

July 23/08 4:37 p.m.

I learned to eat them while we lived in France, and I got to like them, although there is not so much of an own taste, it's the butter and garlic which gives the zest. But I do not like the naked ones. Landfrau once a while feels obliged to live up to her name, working in the garden and such. Today I discovered that it must be the year of the naked snails. I remember a year we had moml's niece with family for overnite visitors,they took a plane to Turkey the next morning out of D. airport. So, since it had been a nice warm summer night, we sat in the garden, having a keg of beer and some food. Now those naked things love beer! In no time we had them crawling all over the places, stepping onto them with our naked feet. And the kid of the niece wanted to save each and everyone of them and started bawling loudly when her father stepped on them to tease her. After an hour I could have wrung the kids neck and shot the father. -
Today I flushed several down the toilet, yes, I know, they too are mother, father and tiny snail kid, but me, I am snail god!

Burden of the Books

July 22/08 3:18 p.m.

Grrr...getting 4 books for a (birthday) present from different persons, having read three of them already and the last one, gosh! too sophisticated for my old brain. I want to live,sigh and cry with the books I read, for brain food I have the internet, yep. - Giving away books I have been just as unlucky, the last two I wanted to "surprise" my daughter with, she had read them already. But,alas, I exchanged two of my books, one of them the sophisticated one,and even got some money back, what a deal, could get used to that. -
And for all of you,who like to sigh and cry with the stories they read also, here is a recommandation: THE CENTER OF WINTER by Marya Hornbacher /Harper Collins NY
and you can also get it at HEYNE's (81056) " Du hast nicht gesagt ich liebe Dich "(German version) .

Enough is enough

July 20/08 9:54 p.m.

We say: the devil is hidden in the detail. Now take this, Herr Husband, the last day in his wheelchair, knocked over a big lamp, he had to squeeze himself into that special corner, and backwards, that is! Landfrau dragged the heavy piece to the repair shop, had been a task loading it into the car. Corner without light for days not so nice. Yesterday picked up the lamp, switched it on, whoom bang, a short circuit! Phoned the shop, they say it must be a slipped isolation. So, next week, same procedure. I slowly but surely think that we have had it with the mishaps, we deserve some pampering now,or not?

Good News

July 18/08 9:55 a.m.

Friends and fans, look at bottom of page,weather pixie is back! Now I can check on my weather ,when,looking out of the window I do not trust my eyes. Our heating has started itself this morning (outdoor feeler) , I suppose we are waiting for snow (little mean joke).

New Pond Population

July 17/08 9:26 a.m.

Since "Herr Husband" is still the casted,handicapped one not allowed to drive a car,Landfrau decided to end the state of loneliness of the leftover fish in our pond (faithful readers are familiar with my several "fish" stories) . So, hated Krefeld is the only place where, according to the internet, fish for ponds could be found. First shop I decided to look for, the road had been blocked off completely, deviation etc. did not know where it would take me. So I decided to visit the second one,which had been seen at the side of the road all the time I had been driving to the hospital. Mysteriously the shop had vanished. About the third one my Tom Tom navi ,which by then I decided to activate, told me the street number was not available and inspite of driving up and down that road I could not spot a 200. So I went into a roadside market for building materials and there a friendly lady pointed out a new shopping center, where I might be lucky. And bingo...a big store for animal needs and - bless them - fish tanks galore! By then I must have gone bonkers because of all the fish swimming around I insisted on a special one, I had the feeling it had looked at me, transfering: take me,take me! - My, a fish,not a puppy! - I also got a tiny goldfish without telepathy. Now we have a populated pond. For how long??

P.S. Link to a pic of veiltails

A Ray of Sunshine in the Morning

July 16/08 9:07 a.m.

LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE!

Slowly but surely

July 15/08 7:46 p.m.

Yes, we are approaching normality, not quite yet, but there is hope. We had an "outside" birthday party for moml (man of my life) at the Canoo the floating restaurant I had been reporting about at previous occasions. Food had been plenty and good and the ambience terrific, when it started getting dark the patron lit candle lanterns all over the places and with the beautiful bright skyline of Düsseldorf and the even brighter lights and movements of the big "Düsseldorfer Kirmes"(watch the slide shows in article) you had that holiday feeling and since it had been a warm summer night for a change the setting had been perfect.
And today we had lunch at the "Langster Fährhaus" a place quite near to our home at the ferry landing,which we also favour.
Of course I am still the diligent driver, but July 25th the cast will come off, then we shall see further.

Beautiful,but no Pets

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July 12/08 4:35 p.m.

Found this touching movie about the Northamerican bisons.
When we had been in South Dakota a few years ago, we watched the buffalo-roundup at Custer State Park. Quite a sight for which you had to get up very early in the morning, but it had been worth it. What amazed me at that time was, where all those other spectators came from in the middle of nowhere. Beeing eye to eye with the beasts I had been glad that there had been a fence between us. We have been told that every year accidents, even deadly ones, happen, when tourists think they are confronted with animals they can treat as pets.

But now I am going to take out my own personal pet, Herr Hund, no danger there, oh yes, he might lick you to death!

Amazing

July 10/08 6:07 p.m.

...that those geraniums ever came across with blossoms. Every time they were about to bloom,they got beaten up by storm,rain or hale. Now they made it and it's worth a pic before something ruins them again. Our weather is not really playing up to the time of the year.

Hi, I'm back!

July 9/08 8:00 p. m .

And thanks to valerian I do not care so much about all the " shit happening" anymore . Besides the patient has a walking cast since yesterday, he even can climb stairs and can reach his own bed again, so the living room camp has been removed. Still, there are certain things not so easy yet, but there is light at the end of the tunnel. I always have my doubts with certain medics, so I insisted the patient should consult another doctor, and bingo, his cast had been a real "masterwork". Now he has a new one and a walking piece attached to it on top. Of course, he would not win in the paralympics, but he can move without the wheelchair, how we started to hate that piece! Unfortunately driving the car is out, even an automatic, law is against it and in case of an accident there would be no coverage. So Landfrau still is the obidient chauffeur. And the obidient nurse, and the obidient servant, but thanks to valerian I don't give a damn.

Not in the Mood

July 6/08 5:50 p.m.